Today we will look at how the Tampa (Hillsborough County), Florida housing market performed in December of 2016.

Median Sold Price* jumped 10% compared to December of 2015, as 1,580 Homes Sold. That was 52 more than last December, a 3% gain. In contrast, the Number of Homes for Sale dropped 4% or 235 units from a year ago.

TheAverage Number of Days a home stayed on the market before selling also declined a whooping 26%, as homes sold in 51 days, compared to 69 days in December of 2015. Housing Inventory continued to dry up too, as Months of Supply hit 2.9 months versus 4.0 months in December of 2015. That represented a plunge of 28%.

(MEDIAN SOLD PRICE – Median means “in the middle,” meaning that half of the homes sold above the Median Sold Price and half sold below it. For example, if 5 homes sold in a zip code for $200,000, $250,000, $300,000, $400,000 and $800,000, the Median Price would be the one in the middle. In this case, that would be the $300,000 home.In contrast, average selling price would just be the sum of the selling prices of the 5 homes divided by 5, or $330,000. Many real estate statisticians prefer median price as a better indicator of the “typical” price within an area or zip code. Why? It is not affected by “outliers” or homes sold at an extremely high or low price, like the $800,000 home in our example.)

Bottom Line

With prices and sales up, and housing inventory down, look for more sellers to jump into the market. We have already had a unusually busy month in January, which appears to indicate that sellers have a sense of urgency about listing their homes while housing inventory is down and before interest rates go any higher.

Tampa:

After reviewing many forecasts and predictions of business trends likely to arrive or accelerate in 2017, let’s boil them down to ten that are most likely to influence the Tampa Bay business scene in the new year.

These trends are culled from input from consulting firms like Forrester Research, publications like Fortune, Forbes, The Economist and the Harvard Business Review, and are sprinkled with examples of local companies and organizations trying to adjust and keep up in such disruptive times.

From the Blog:

Last week, CNBC ran an article quoting self-made millionaire David Bach explaining that not purchasing a home is “the single biggest mistake millennials are making” because buying real estate is “an escalator to wealth.”

Bach went on to explain:

“If millennials don’t buy a home, their chances of actually having any wealth in this country are little to none. The average homeowner to this day is 38 times wealthier than a renter.”

In his bestselling book, “The Automatic Millionaire,” Bach does the math:

“As a renter, you can easily spend half a million dollars or more on rent over the years ($1,500 a month for 30 years comes to $540,000), and in the end wind up just where you started — owning nothing. Or you can buy a house and spend the same amount paying down a mortgage, and in the end wind up owning your own home free and clear!”

Advice for Buyers:

If your News Year’s Resolution is to buy your first home, before you start looking at houses you’ll need to get your finances in order. To know the state of your finances, you’ll first need to review your credit reports and obtain your FICO® credit score to better understand your creditworthiness.

Knowing how the data influences your FICO® credit score will enable you to monitor your score which will affect the type of home loan and interest rate you qualify for.

Advice for Sellers

Everyone has a few flaws. But if you plan to sell your home in 2017, these foibles can literally cost you—we’re talking tens of thousands of dollars. What’s more, many homeowners may not even be aware that certain actions can hurt their odds of selling their home (that is, until it sits on the market with no takers).

To help clue you in, here’s a list of regrettable blunders to kick to the curb starting now, even if you plan to put your home on the market later this year.

Home Loans

The 30-year mortgage rate fell this week for the first time since the presidential election, dropping 12 basis points to 4.20 percent. This marks the first time since 2014 that mortgage rates opened the year above 4 percent. Despite this week’s breather, the 66-basis point increase in the mortgage rate since November 3, is taking its toll–the MBA’s refinance index plunged 22 percent this week.

30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.20 percent with an average 0.5 point for the week ending January 5, 2017, down from last week when it averaged 4.32 percent. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 3.97 percent.

15-year FRM this week averaged 3.44 percent with an average 0.5 point, down from last week when it averaged 3.55 percent. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM averaged 3.26 percent.

Average commitment rates should be reported along with average fees and points to reflect the total upfront cost of obtaining the mortgage. Visit the following link for the Definitions. Borrowers may still pay closing costs which are not included in the survey.

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About our blog

Ranked #1 Realtor in Tampa by U.S. News and World Report.

Doug, Annette & Dale Bohannon

Team Bohannon Real Estate Experts

Keller Williams Tampa Properties
Tampa, Florida

(813) 979-4963

If you're looking for a trusted partner who exceeds expectations, reduces stress, fulfills promises, and is on top of all the details, consider Tampa's Top Real Estate Team: Doug, Annette and Dale Bohannon when buying or selling your home, call us today at 813-979-4963